Vigo seize the summit as Madrid stumble and Bilbao sink
Four wins from four put Vigo top of the Spanish First Division, while Alavés stay unbeaten and A. Bilbao fall to 18th.
The Spanish First Division has a new leader, and the early table is already punishing the clubs who expected a gentler start. Vigo have won all four matches to reach 12 points; Real Madrid FC, top a cycle ago, are now fifth. At the other end, A. Bilbao have slipped to 18th without a win, while Real Sociedad and C. Leonesa occupy the final two places.
Vigo’s 2-1 victory over Ponferrada began a climb from ninth to first. The lead is two points over Alavés, who have also avoided defeat and have the stronger goal difference, at +7 to Vigo’s +4. There is no room yet for grand conclusions. But four victories are four victories, and Vigo have made the table say what it says.
Alavés held Real Madrid FC to a 1-1 draw before moving up from eighth to second. Madrid remain unbeaten, but two draws in four have cost them the top spot. Their 1-0 win over Oviedo was followed by a goalless draw with Vallecano: a solid unbeaten start, not a commanding one.
Athletico Madrid and Barcelona are level on nine points, with Athletico third on goal difference. Both have taken three wins and one defeat, and each has had to absorb a setback against the other: Athletico beat Barcelona 2-0, then lost 1-0 at Sevilla; Barcelona followed their defeat with wins over Valencia, 2-0, and Sevilla, 2-1. Real Betis, meanwhile, have dropped from second to ninth.
For A. Bilbao, the warning is sharper. Their 2-0 defeat at Villarreal leaves them on two points after four games, down from 13th to 18th. They have drawn twice and lost twice, with no win to interrupt the slide. A Basque club should not be treated as a footnote in a national league round-up; nor should its position be softened. Bilbao are in trouble already.
Villarreal’s result lifted them from 20th to 10th. Ponferrada went the other way, falling from 11th to 17th after their 2-2 draw with Getafe, and remain without a win. Real Sociedad also have no victory: their 2-0 home defeat by Athletico Madrid leaves them 19th with one point. C. Leonesa, likewise winless, are bottom on one point.
The immediate contrast is stark: Vigo and Alavés have turned the opening four games into a platform, while four clubs are still waiting for their first win. Vigo’s next listed fixture is Getafe v Vigo on 17 September. Until then, the summit belongs to a side that has not dropped a point—and the pressure belongs to those already chasing.